Bulldogs Brave Weather To Finish Fifth At GLIAC North Invitational

Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University men's golf team had an impressive opening round before finishing fifth overall in the 2014 GLIAC North Invitational held on Saturday and Sunday (Sept. 20-21).

The Bulldogs carded a 289 team score in Saturday's opening 18 holes of action to hold the first-day lead, but shot a 315 figure under windy and blustery conditions on Sunday to finish at 604 overall for the 36-hole event at HawksHead Golf Course in South Haven, Mich.

Despite dropping to fifth overall, the Bulldogs were only four strokes out of second place as the second to sixth-place teams all finished within six shots of each other. Host Grand Valley State won the event with a 593 figure followed by Malone and Wayne State, which shared runner-up honors with a 600 score.

Saginaw Valley State placed fourth and was only a single stroke ahead of FSU with a 603 figure with Tiffin finishing behind the Bulldogs in sixth at 606 for the tournament.

The Bulldogs' Ben Cook placed tied for second individually with a 144 total on rounds of 68 and 76 over the two days of action. Behind him was Sam Stark in a share of 23rd place at 152 on scores of 73 and 79 for the two rounds.

FSU's Zak Kiefer carded a 153 and placed tied for 30th with a round of 73 on Saturday followed by an 80 on Sunday. Meanwhile, Cody Simons was two strokes behind him in a tie for 40th overall with a 155 total as he shot 75 in the opening round before carding a 80 over the final round.

Finally, Tyler Siech came in tied for 66th in the field with a 161 score on rounds of 81 and 80 for the two days, respectively. Siech was the lone Bulldog to improve his score in the final round while battling the weather conditions.

The Bulldogs also had a pair of golfers compete as individuals in the tournament and their scores did not count toward the team total in the event. Senior Chris Eaton tied for fifth in the field with a 146 total on identical scores of 73 each round while freshman Seth Terpstra shared 66th at 161 for the tournament on rounds of 80 and 81 overall.

A total of 14 schools and nearly 90 golfers competed in the 36 holes of competition.

Ferris State returns to competition on Monday and Tuesday, Sept. 29-30, as the Bulldogs compete in the NCAA Midwest Fall Regional #1 to be held at Harborside International in Chicago.